Yomi BlackSolar Photovoltaic Installation and Maintenance is examined at senior secondary depth, three years of teaching examined in one diet. That is the sentence to hold onto, because the same subject examined by a different body at a different depth needs a different plan, and candidates who carry preparation across from one to the other lose marks they did not need to lose.
- Subject
- Solar Photovoltaic Installation and Maintenance
- Examined by
- WAEC
- Format here
- A written examination with an objective paper, an essay paper, and a practical or alternative to practical where the subject has one
- Depth
- Senior secondary depth, three years of teaching examined in one diet
- What the grade does
- A credit, and credits are the unit almost every admission requirement is written in
- Papers
- Objective, essay and a practical.
- Required for
- Electrical engineering at technical level, and it stands alone as the trade subject with the strongest current demand in Nigeria
How WAEC examines this subject
The format is a written examination with an objective paper, an essay paper, and a practical or alternative to practical where the subject has one, and it is marked by examiners against a published mark scheme, with method marks awarded for working and presentation marks for layout.
The grade sits on a certificate that does not expire and that you will show for the rest of your working life.
What the subject covers
Use these topic areas as the frame for your own checklist, then verify the detail against the syllabus WAEC publishes itself, because depth and emphasis shift between curriculum cycles even when the headings do not.
- Solar radiation and PV cell principles.
- System components: panels, charge controllers, inverters and batteries.
- System sizing and load assessment.
- Installation practice, mounting and wiring.
- Safety, earthing and protection.
- Maintenance, fault-finding and performance monitoring.
The paper structure, and how to weight your time
Objective, essay and a practical.
Split your preparation roughly in the proportion the components are weighted. Candidates habitually over-prepare the part they enjoy and meet the other part for the first time in the hall.
What makes it hard
System sizing is a real engineering calculation, and candidates who cannot do a load assessment cannot pass the paper regardless of practical skill.
Set that against how this examination works. Three years of school teaching, which means your gaps are your school’s gaps, and finding them is the first job.
Where marks are lost in this subject
- Sizing errors, which are the most heavily weighted calculation in the paper.
- Unsafe wiring practice in the practical.
- Treating it as theory when the marks are in installation.
Master load assessment and sizing. It is both the hardest section and the one that makes the certificate worth money.
Turning it into a plan
- Get the current syllabus from WAEC and check the year range on the cover.
- Write one line per topic area, with a box beside it.
- Work a past paper in this examination’s format, a written examination with an objective paper, and tag every question back to a line.
- Mark the lines your teaching has never covered. Those are the priority.
- Re-weight towards the component carrying the most marks. One diet a year for school candidates, so there is no second attempt inside the same admission cycle.
What a good grade here is worth
In this examination the grade is a credit, and credits are the unit almost every admission requirement is written in. Solar Photovoltaic Installation and Maintenance is required for electrical engineering at technical level, and it stands alone as the trade subject with the strongest current demand in Nigeria, and course requirements are checked subject by subject, so a strong overall result with a weak grade here is a disqualification for the course that names it rather than a near miss.
Questions candidates ask about Solar Photovoltaic Installation and Maintenance
What is it required for?
Electrical engineering at technical level, and it stands alone as the trade subject with the strongest current demand in Nigeria.
How many papers are there?
Objective, essay and a practical.
What makes it hard?
System sizing is a real engineering calculation, and candidates who cannot do a load assessment cannot pass the paper regardless of practical skill.
What is the most common way candidates lose marks?
Sizing errors, which are the most heavily weighted calculation in the paper.
Where do I get the official syllabus?
From WAEC, on its own site, free. Check the year range on the cover before you use it.
Has the syllabus changed?
Syllabuses are revised on published cycles and old ones stay online after they expire. If the copy you are holding has no year range, you do not know what you are holding.
How do I turn it into revision?
One line per topic area with a box beside it, then tick the lines off against past papers rather than against your notes. The lines that stay blank are the finding.
Is Solar Photovoltaic Installation and Maintenance compulsory?
No. It is a trade subject, chosen as one of your electives, and you should choose it because a course you want names it.
- WAEC Solar Photovoltaic Installation and Maintenance: past questions
- WAEC Solar Photovoltaic Installation and Maintenance: how to pass
- All WAEC subjects
- WAEC syllabus, all subjects
- WAEC grading and what counts as a credit
Sources
- The West African Examinations Council, Nigeria. Entry regulations for WASSCE. waecnigeria.org
- The West African Examinations Council, Nigeria. Registration and entry. waecnigeria.org
- The West African Examinations Council, Nigeria. Frequently Asked Questions. www.waecnigeria.org